The state of Colorado will no longer provide Medicaid recipients with a lesser-quality medicine for Hepatitis C, an issue at the center of an ACLU of Colorado lawsuit.

Instead the state will provide a newer antiviral medication that’s much more effective, the ACLU said Friday.

“Federal law requires that Medicaid provide all medically necessary treatment,” Mark Silverstein, the ACLU of Colorado’s legal director, said in a statement. “Throughout the litigation, we have maintained that Medicaid is obligated to provide the new curative medications to all Medicaid recipients who are living with the HCV virus.

“With this new change in policy, Colorado Medicaid will no longer restrict treatment to persons who have already sustained serious damage to their livers.”

Hepatitis C is contagious, progressive disease carried by an estimated 3.5 million Americans, some of whom are unaware because it has no symptoms until it’s done serious liver damage. With proper medication, Hepatitis C can be controlled and cured.

The new policy, which can be read by clicking here, takes effect Jan. 1.

He called it “a major step toward resolving the litigation and providing necessary medical care to thousands of Medicaid recipients who need it.”

Better medicine is a money-saver for taxpayers, the ACLU contends, by helping patients before they get sicker, which costs a lot more.

The ACLU filed the lawsuit in U.S. District Court in Denver last year. A copy of it is available by clicking here.

The ACLU is still in court with the Colorado Department of Corrections

“With Medicare, the Veterans Administration, all major private health insurers and now Medicaid all agreeing to provide curative treatment for Hepatitis C at all stages of the disease, the only Coloradans who continue to be denied access to treatment are people who are incarcerated in Colorado prisons, where a massive Hepatitis C crisis persists,” Silverstein said.

He said research shows at 1 in 9 prisoners have Hepatitis C.

“We are seeking a swift and just result for our clients, who cannot afford to wait for access to treatment while their health continues to deteriorate,” he said.